


Call It Magic, Call It True

by orphan_account



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Atlantis: The Lost Empire Fusion, Language, M/M, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-03
Updated: 2016-08-03
Packaged: 2018-07-29 01:55:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,302
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7665793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Shiro was raised on his grandfather's tales of the Lost City of Atlantis and, after the man's passing dedicates himself to doing what his grandfather didn't have a chance to do. He knows it's out there, can feel it in his bones, all he needs is a chance to prove it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Call It Magic, Call It True

**Author's Note:**

  * For [OverMyFreckledBody](https://archiveofourown.org/users/OverMyFreckledBody/gifts).



> Special dedication to OMFB, who tolerates not just my Shance ramblings, but my Heith and Polyship ones too. <3

It was the shaking that roused Allura from her sleep. Her entire room was shaking, the floor heaving and twisting, tiles shattering as they came loose from the wall, the figurines Coran had carved for her breaking as they fell to the ground. Her bed slide this way and that; it made her think of watching boats out on the river. 

She couldn’t even open her mouth to scream as dust and bits of the ceiling rained down on her. She clutched her sheets and shut her eyes, just as her mother had always told her to do to send monsters away. If she stayed where she was her mother or father or Coran would come. They would come and set everything right and-

Crying. Someone was crying and screaming. Was...was that her mother?

She scrambled from the bed, nearly toppling as the ground heaved again, then stumbled towards the door. It took a few tries to turn the knob because of her badly her hands were shaking but then she was falling out into the hallway, scraping up her hands and knees. She sucked her teeth at the sting as her eyes started to burn but-

“Allura!”

She got to her feet anyway. Her mother was at the end of the hall, wearing one her nightgowns, and beckoning to her. Coran was with her, leaning hard on the door that lead to the nursery, pale face bright red and screwed up as if he were in pain. Allura ran to them, wincing at sharp things bit into her feet, and found herself clutching her mother and sobbing against her stomach. She smelled like the ocean, as she always did, and held Allura tighter than she could remember ever being held. 

“Oh Allura.” Was murmured into her hair again and again, almost a prayer; something wet splashed against her skin. 

Coran grunted and the sound of something sliding then crashing to the ground made Allura’s mother jerk away from her; when she tilted her head up she saw that her mother’s eyes were wet and that she looked almost gray under the deep brown of her skin. The nursery door was open some and Allura could hear screaming from within. 

Coran threw himself at the door again and this time her mother helped, pushed her shoulder into it and dug her bare feet into the ground. Allura watched, eyes wide, as together they forced the gap wider. 

“Allura go through.” Coran shouted. His face was even more red, like the inside of a pomegranate, and his face was covered in sweat.  She shook her head, arms curling around herself. He huffed out a breath then smiled shakily. “I know it’s scary, my dear, but there isn’t much time. You must be brave.”

Her mother smiled as well. “Please Allura, be strong for me.” 

She didn’t want to, not when all she could see through the gap was darkness and all she could hear was the baby screeching. She stepped forward tentatively and, getting a nod from her mother, ducked through the opening.

The nursery was a mess, all of the furniture turned over, clothes strewn about, and broken things all on the floor. The crib was on it’s side, everything that had once been inside a jumble that was half on the floor and half still inside of it. She ran over, swallowing thickly as she stepped over the legs of one of the maids; the rest of the woman was hidden beneath the heavy stone mark carved in the likeness of her grandfather, meant to protect her brother. There was a dark puddle creeping from under the stone.

Allura hoped she would be okay. Lady Livan had taken care of her until the baby had come and was one of Allura’s favorites. She played with her daughters often.  

She dropped to the ground, pushing aside sheets, to uncover her wailing brother. He had a dark mark on his forehead and his face was wet and snotty, but that wasn’t anything new. He was always crying, especially when Allura was around. 

But this time he stopped crying as soon as his dark eyes locked onto hers. His arms shot up towards her and he whimpered, face scrunching up. She frowned-she wasn’t supposed to hold him unless her mom or dad was with her-then carefully picked him up. 

_ ‘Arm behind the head, hand under the butt, hold him close Allura.’ Her father smiled down at her as he placed the squirming bundle into her arms.  _

A loud gasp behind her made her turn; her mother was on her hands and knees, having just crawled into the room, and was staring down at Lady Livan’s legs. Allura sat back on her heels, considering her mother’s open mouth and furrowed brows but before she could ask the castle shook again and everything tilted. She held the baby tighter, made sure she hit the ground and not him. 

A loud scraping noise filled the air and then a heavy thud. 

“Coran!” Her mother shouted as she tried to climb to her feet. Allura sat up, looking down at her brother. He whimpered, tiny fist clutching the front of her shirt. “The mask is blocking the door!”

“Quite alright My Queen!” Coran’s voice was muffled. “I will secure the lions and meet you at the temple.” 

“No, we will move-” 

“Go!” There was a thump from the other side of the door. “The children.”

Her mother was quiet, hands hovering above the surface of the huge mask. Then she sighed and turned; in the strange red light Allura could see that her lips were pushed together and there were lines around it and her eyes. She crossed over to her, carefully took the baby from Allura’s arms, and then took her by the hand. 

They left the castle by way of the balcony outside of the nursey, running down the castle stairs and across the courtyard and out into the city. It was a walk she’d taken many times before; through the large gate, out into the market, through the winding streets to the town square, and then up to the temple. And yet it was different, everything gleaming red, strand shadow cast over the ground and familiar buildings strange as the loomed above her. 

The ground was shaking constantly now, so much so that Allura could barely stay on her feet. All around them people were screaming and crying, some as they ran and others were standing or sitting on the cobblestone paths, faces ashen and eyes wide as they cried. 

Buildings were shaking apart, chunks of stone coming loose to crash down all around them and the statues of their elders were cracking and falling to pieces. People were shoving and jostling them as they ran, sometimes so hard they nearly ripped her from her mother's hand. She used her other hand to clutch the swirling fabric of her mother's skirts, and forced herself to keep moving. She wished she could be off the ground, in her mother's arms, but her brother was there already, wailing along with the city.

Allura didn't understand what was going on; she'd never seen so many people upset like this or heard such terrible noise in her life. Never had the ground trembled so. Mother said they were going to the temple, to father, that they would be safe there but for the first time Allura was afraid.

High above them the stone faces of the sleeping kings were no longer turning and their soft blue light had turned red and angry. She knew she was supposed to be looking forward, not up, but Allura’s eyes were drawn there often as they ran from the castle to the temple. The sky was turning red and lightning was slashing through the clouds. Circles of light were roaming the ground, sweeping over people and bathing them in red, pausing, and then moving on.

That too frightened her.

“Alfor!” Her mother shouted. Allura looked away from the sky, tears welling I her eyes at the sight of her father pushing through the crowd rushing into the temple to come towards them. Her parents embraced for a moment and then the squalling bundle that was her brother was passed over. 

“Hurry. We will be safe inside.” Her father said as he turned away. Allura ran after him, her mother's hand still clutched tightly around hers. The temple was ahead of them, the lanterns that floated around it still the same soft blue they’d always been. The priests stood outside, waving their arms and shouting for the everyone to come in, hurry. 

They were almost there, the doors open and welcoming. Only a few more steps and then they’d be inside and all of this could be over. Her father would fix things and keep all the people safe, that was what kings did. They just-

Allura didn’t realize her mother had stopped until she was suddenly jerked backwards, the grip on her hand keeping her from going further, and then was let go. She turned, calling and reaching for her mother. The red circle of light was around her; she was standing on the edge of it, staring down at Allura with a pained express. 

The light flickered red to blue to red and then blue again. 

“Mother!” She stepped forward, hands out but a hand on her shoulder stopped her. 

Her mother’s hair started to move, thin white braids waving and lifting up around her as if blown by a wind only she could feel. The brown of her eyes changed as blue crept in, filled them up with glowing light and then she was floating, bare feet leaving the ground. 

“Allura.” She called, smiling as tears slid down her cheeks. The pendant around her neck, pink crystal carved into the face of a roaring lion, filled with light so bright Allura had to squint to see past it.  “My brave, brave girl. Keep your brother safe.” 

The light of the pendant exploded outwards, blinding Allura. When she could see again her mother was gone. 

 

\---

 

Allura jerked awake, breath caught in her throat. She didn’t move for a time, staring up at the skylight above her. The crystals that lined the ‘sky’ were dark and the only light from outdoors was from the lazily floating flameflies. They flickered and blinked; against the dark crystal sky it looked very much like the murals and pictures in the books she liked to read. 

She rolled out of bed finally, moving silently so as to not wake up her guards, Rose and Glory Livan, and slipped from her room. A brief stop across the hall found her brother was also not in bed. She sighed, shaking her head, then padded through the castle out to the east exit, already knowing where she would find him. 

The city’s guardians, four of the five lions of old, stood in the corners of the castle’s courtyard. Blue, the spirit of water, rested in the eastern corner, next to the tiled fountain. She could hear the soft gurgling of the fountain and the tinkling of water splashing before she stepped out into the warm night air. The lion loomed above everything else, unmoving stone body visible as soon as she’d stepped outside.

The story was that once, a very long time ago before the great flood, the lions had been alive and protected the people of Atlantis from their enemies. She didn’t know if it was true or not, but she often wondered. There was a glimmer of a memory, soft and fleeting like smoke.

_ ‘I will secure the lions.’ _

The Blue Lion cast a long shadow in the hazy light of the floating lanterns. There were flameflies around it, attracted by the lanterns, circling the lion’s head and chirping their familiar song. There was a shadow atop the lion, stretched out on it’s nose, legs dangling over the edge. 

“You should be sleeping.” 

Her brother rolled over so he could peek down at her; messy white hair falling into his face.  “I had the dream again.” 

She pursed her lips thoughtfully as she reached out to press a hand to the lion’s side. They were huge, as big as any of the houses in the city square, and they’d been told often not to play on them yet her brother insisted on scaling Blue whenever he was upset. Or excited. Or had a dream. Or felt like it. 

“About water coming from the sky?” He hummed softly, all the answer she needed. He had seen a picture in a book once and, while such a thing could never happen, he dreamed of it often. She understood; she dreamed about things beyond her reach as well. 

“I think something bad is going to happen.” He said, face tilted up to the crystal covered dome above them as his fingers touched the carving of a serene faced lion hanging around his neck.

“Come inside Lance.” 

He was quiet, staring down at her with dark eyes. He took after their mother in a lot of ways, skin a lighter brown than that of Allura or their father, ears a little higher and more rounded, and eyes deep and dark instead of blue. He blinked then laughed, nodding. He scrambled down like he’d been born to climb house sized lion statues, oblivious to how anxious watching him do it made her. Once he was firmly on the ground she breathed out again then threw her arm around his neck, dragging him closer.

_ ‘Keep your brother safe.’ _

She touched the pendant hanging around her neck, it’s soft pink crystal carved in the image of a snarling lion, the same as the one her mother had worn, then squeezed Lance a little tighter.


End file.
